The present invention relates to a garment bag. More particularly, it relates to a garment bag having a pocket for accommodating therein a chemical (e.g. an insecticide, a deodorant, a demoisturing agent, an anti-microbial agent), thereby effectively protecting a garment not only from attachment and accumulation of dusts but also from damages by public pests, offensive odors or moistures.
Conventional garment bags are normally kept in a closet, a suitcase or the like and usually function only to avoid dust from collecting on garments accommodated therein, although there are some garment bags having a number of pores at the surfaces for the purpose of ventilation. Protection of garments from other damage, for instance, by public pests, offensive odors or moistures is performed separately by placing in the closet, the suitcase or the like a suitable chemical such as an insecticide, a deodorant or a demoisturing agent, usually packaged in a container. Even if an attempt is made to provide a conventional garment bag with a chemical, a troublesome operation is required for its provision and difficulties are encountered on determination of an appropriate location for the provision. Further, the use of a garment bag in a closet, a suitcase or the like rather decreases the preventive effect of a chemical.
A major object of the present invention is to provide an improved garment bag having a pocket for accommodating therein a chemical in a state easy for handling and in a manner assuring exertion of the preventive effect which the chemicals such as an insecticide, a deodorant, a demoisturing agent and an anti-microbial agent exhibit.
The garment bag of the present invention comprises a gas-permeable surface sheet, a gas-impermeable back sheet joined thereto at their peripheries, an opening provided on either one of said surface and back sheets to provide access to the garment bag and a gas-impermeable sheet joined to said surface sheet at the periphery to make a pocket for accommodating a chemical therein.
In the above structure, the surface sheet may be made of any gas-permeable material such as cloth, nonwoven fabric or Japanese paper. The back sheet may be made of any gas-impermeable material such as synthetic elastic resin or a laminated product thereof. A laminated product of a synthetic soft resin sheet with a gas-permeable sheet (e.g. cloth, nonwoven fabric, Japanese paper) may be also used to make the back sheet. The locus and number of the pocket are not limited as far as it stands on the surface sheet. As the material for the pocket, there is preferably used any transparent or semi-transparent sheet made of polyvinyl chloride, polyester, ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer, polyethylene, polypropylene or the like. A laminated product of such transparent or semi-transparent sheet is also usable. The chemical may be as such accommodated in the pocket when it is in a shaped form having a considerable size. Preferably, however, the chemical is admitted in a flat disposable container, and the container is accommodated in the pocket. The term "container" is herein used in a broad sense and may be any one which can retain therein a chemical in a solid or liquid state. A typical example of the container in the simplest form is a nonwoven fabric, which may be impregnated with a vaporizable chemical. Another example is a bag made of Japanese paper, wherein a solid chemical may be admitted.
According to the present invention, the surface sheet and the back sheet are joined at their peripheries to make a bag in which the ventilation of air is accomplished through the surface sheet which is gas-permeable. The surface sheet functions also as the inner sheet for the pocket, and the chemical in the pocket is diffused through such surface sheet into the bag to exert its preventive effect on the garment in the bag. Since the back sheet is gas-imperpeable, the inside of the bag is not forcedly influenced by the outer air so that the preventive effect of the chemical is efficiently exerted. Due to the flat shape of the container, the surface of the bag can also be kept substantially flat and retain the chemical in a stable state. The outer sheet of the pocket is made of a transparent or semi-transparent material so that the chemical or the container accommodated in the pocket can be visually observed from the outside. It is particularly preferred that the container is provided with a function indicating the existence of the chemical so that the consumption of the chemical can be readily ascertained by visual observation.
The present invention will be hereinafter explained more in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: